


Golden Eyes

by Saii_Jack



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: AU, Angst, Eren Has a Secret, Eren wears contacts, Eventual Romance, Gay, M/M, Minor Character Death, My First Work in This Fandom, Older Characters, Other Characters - Freeform, Slow Build, Younger characters, not really - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-06
Updated: 2016-01-01
Packaged: 2018-05-05 05:38:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5363378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Saii_Jack/pseuds/Saii_Jack
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At 10, he witnessed the massacre of his family and friends. His mother had sacrificed herself so that he would be able to run away and hide. He still regrets that decision; He believed if he stayed and fought, he wouldn't have had to watch everyone get killed. All of this, he thought. All that killing just for eyes. They weren't special, but the color captured everyone's attention.</p><p>At 15, while holding the daughter of a family that took him in, he realized he brought death wherever he went. So he ran. Ran until he couldn't no more.</p><p>At 17, he doesn't trust anyone. He doesn't smile nor laugh. </p><p>At 19, he's ready to die. He's cornered by the same people who killed his family and as he closes his eyes, he's saved. For the first time in years, he makes a friend. The only problem is, he's told to hide his eyes if he wants to live. It isn't easy when suddenly he has to live in a house with people after his eyes. </p><p>This is the story of the surviving boy with golden eyes, Eren Jaeger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Boy With Golden Eyes

The whole world can become the enemy when you lose what you love.  
—Kristina McMorris

 

He looked up when his mother came into the house, slamming the door. She was panting, as if she had been running for miles. She quickly walked over to him and told him to get up and go outside from the back door. He got up when she started walking into the kitchen asking her why. She yelled at him to stop when he went to answer the banging on the door. He had fear growing inside of him when she saw how panicked she looked.

"Mom," he spoke over the continuous banging. "Mom what's going on?" When a crack was heard, everything went silent. His mother stopped mid-step staring at the door and he stared at her. Screams were heard from outside, some from anguish, others from anger, before the banging started once more. That broke his mother's spell as she grabbed his arm and started running out towards the back door.

"Mom! Tell me what's going on!" he yelled as they exited the house. As soon as the door closed, he heard the people in front break into his house. He looked over at his mother who urged him to continue running.

"I'll tell you once we're safe." she said as continued pulling him. He noticed the large forest they were heading towards; The one he was told never to go to.

"Mom! You told me not to go there!" he said as he tried freeing his arm. His mind didn't understand the severity of danger they were in, and his mother knew it. Yet she couldn't bring herself to tell him. He was too young, too innocent.

"For now, we are. So stop trying to avoid it!" she said looking at him with her golden eyes full of hidden fear. Identical eyes looked up at her and she knew then, he wouldn't.

"No! I want to know what's going on!" he yelled freeing himself. He stared at his mother, daring her to try and grab him without explaining herself. She looked up when she saw one of the men exit the back door. 

"We need to go, now." she quietly said. She reached forward to grab him once more and he took a step back. A step back towards the man who noticed them. 

"Tell me." he spoke, anger seeping into his voice. The man went back inside to tell the others. She looked back down at her son.

"Not now, we need to go first." she said trying to calm down. They only had a few seconds before the rest of the group of men returned.

"No! I won't move until you--"

"Please let's just--"

"Stop trying to tell me what--"

"Listen to me!"

"Listen to  _me_! I'm not--"

"I know you're--"

"No you--"

"EREN!" she yelled. His first thought was that he had gotten her angry. But when she started running towards him, past him, he turned around to see a large man with a gun aimed at him. She pushed him aside causing him to misfire and he realized why she didn't want to tell him, there was no time. The man gave a growl and hit her with his fist allowing the other men to grab her. _  
_

"M-Mom..." he whispered in fear as they started to punch her. The man with the gun looked over in his direction giving a wicked smile.

"Hey, is that your kid?" he asked his mother. But the man already knew the answer. He motioned for one of the men to grab him but in a fit of fear and rage, his mother freed herself and tackled the man walking towards him. 

"Eren, run! Run and don't look back!" she yelled as she was once more held. This time, the gun was aimed at her by the man she tackled.

"I can't!"

"Go!" she yelled. He took another step back and with eyes brimming with tears, he turned around and ran towards the forest. He heard the men yell and footsteps chase after him and his blood ran cold when he heard the gun fire. He didn't look back. He couldn't. He continued to run through the forest, the footsteps behind him becoming fainter as they started losing sight of him. When he couldn't hear them anymore, he continued until he slumped defeated against a tree. 

He breathed a shaky breath before he started crying and hugged himself. He hoped his mother was somehow able to survive but deep down he knew she hadn't. He refused to believe it however and as the sun started shying away from the enormous trees, his tears had run out and he weakly stood on his tired legs. He ran in a straight line, he had hoped at least, and decided to start making his way back.

She was still alive. She has to be.

He managed to make it home by night fall. Everything was silent, even the birds and dogs that never stayed quiet. He walked blindly through his backyard as no light shone except for the occasional flicker from one of the street lights. The moon was hidden behind the few clouds passing by and when he almost tripped he looked to see. It wasn't a rock or a piece of wood laying around. 

The clouds moved allowing the moon to shine. It shined above him and his eyes widened when he looked at the body of his mother. Her clothes were torn on where he thought she had been grabbed and her mouth was slightly open with dried blood pouring out. But he dropped to her knees when he saw the bullet wound on her throat and her eyes; Her beautiful, golden eyes that reminded him of the sun. They were gone. All that were left, were empty bloody sockets. 

He took her hand and squeezed hoping that would bring her back. 

It didn't.

Not even when the sun rose again and he left her with a last kiss to her hand. He didn't sleep through the night. Images of his mother smiling and laughing with him and his father the day before kept replaying. He walked into the small city he was in and all around him, were dead bodies. Bodies of women, men, children, even animals were all around Homes were broken into, some seemed to have been burnt. These men showed no mercy, he thought. He walked over solemnly to where his mother had been before she arrived. He looked at the broken windows in the food market and walked inside. He found the body of his father but he already wasted all his tears on his mother. He walked past reluctantly towards the back.

No one was alive.

He lived in a city with friendly neighbors who all had or had someone with golden eyes. That inspired their city's name, "Riicst." All that however changed in the span of one night. Everyone, along with few of those men who were after him, were dead. And they weren't coming back.

* * *

 

A few years later, he had grown accustomed to living with a young woman named Petra and her parents. They took him in when they found him wandering the streets a few months after the death of the people in his city. He didn't talk about why he was alone and bloodied and they didn't ask either. He cried on the drive to their home after being introduced to the then fifteen year old Petra. Her eyes were a golden color, which she inherited from her mother. She held him in his arms throughout the drive whispering everything was okay and he wouldn't be alone anymore.

He looked up to her as the older sister he always wanted and she responded the same, "I've always wanted a younger brother." She always ruffled his hair and when he turned thirteen, she had to get on her tiptoes to do so.

"Stop getting taller!" she would say with a laugh. He would laugh too and would carry her even when she said to put her down.

He was the first to know Petra had a boyfriend. She tried hiding it but when she blushed around Auruo- the guy who always bit his tongue- he knew immediately. When they departed he looked at her, golden eyes meeting golden. He gave a grin and wiggled his eyebrows at her.

"Auruo, huh?" She gave him the silent treatment for half the day before he bought her a three-scooped ice cream of vanilla, strawberry, and rainbow sherbet. She accepted and forgave him.

"Just don't tell mom and dad, okay? They would freak." They both laughed as they walked through the streets.

He turned fifteen. He received a necklace that had the wings of a bird, one black, one white, from Petra. She said she found it when she was looking for something he would like. He gave her a crushing hug in return, one she returned weakly. From their parents, he received $100 and a new sweater. He loved them even though he told them they shouldn't waste so much money on him. They laughed it off saying he's their son, albeit adopted, and they can spend how much they want on him. 

Just like back then, everything changed in the span of a day. Petra's family were killed. They hid him and Petra in the remove-able wooden planks used as their floor.

"Don't come out." Their father said as he put the planks back on. Petra held him close as they heard the yells and struggles of their parents against the men. She looked down when she felt his body stiffen and she whispered his name. He didn't respond. She shook him gently and was surprised when he started crying. He hadn't cried since that first time she met him. He pulled away and moved as far as he could from her and curled into a ball. 

"Eren, hey, what's wrong?" she reached out a hand but was slapped away when she touched his shoulder. He curled even tighter as he heard the running footsteps on top. Petra's hands curled against her chest, frowning.

"Eren, tell me." she softly said. His eyes widened and he whimpered. Tell me. Those words had haunted him all these years. He shook his head and cried quietly to not alert the people upstairs.

"M-Mom." he whispered barely loud enough, but Petra heard him. She looked up at the planks blocking her view from the fight on top then back at him. She shuffled closer and ignoring his pushing, held him.

"I won't leave you!" she whispered when she managed to hold his head against her neck. "I promise, okay? I'll be here for you, whenever you need me!" He cried more when he heard the gun fire, three times upstairs. He heard the thumps of bodies falling and felt Petra's body shaking. He looked up to see her face twisted in pain as tears flowed down her cheeks onto his shoulder. He wasn't the only one suffering; She probably just lost her parents and Auruo. Auruo was still out there.

"Petra, I'll be here too!" he hiccuped making her smile momentarily through her tears. They hugged each other and cried until there were no more footsteps. Petra because of the probable death of her parents, and Eren because he remembered the death he caused for his mother.

"I have to go find Auruo." Petra said as she stood up.

"No you can't! What if they're still out there?" he tried reasoning. But he knew that look in her eyes when she started removing the planks. Nothing will change her mind. When she pulled herself out she looked in to look at him and gave a smile. 

"If I'm not back in five minutes get out and run through the back door, okay?" Back door. He curled his hands at his side, becoming the child he was when he refused his mother. But he clenched his jaw and nodded. Petra smiled and put the planks back on but loose enough so that he would be able to move them. He waited what seemed hours before he got up and moved the planks. His arms wobbled, surprised at the heavy-ness and easily dragged himself out. He looked at the back of his house and headed towards the front door.

He had to find Petra first. He couldn't leave her, not again. He walked past his adoptive parents' deceased bodies and out the front door towards the direction of Auruo's house. He kept his face straight ahead, not giving the bodies around him a glance. His mother's bloody sockets flashed through his head and he didn't want to look and see them on someone else. He turned a corner and stopped when he saw Petra on the floor. He ran to her and he almost screamed when she glanced at him. She was still alive.

He got down and cradled her in his arms. She looked at him, eyes still intact, and tried to give him a smile but her face twisted on into pain. He panicked and stroked her hair gently looking at her.

"Eren..." she whispered. He noticed her voice sounded like that time she had a sore throat. 

"Petra, hey, don't talk...Please," he said tears forming again. He brushed her light brown hair aside revealing the odd way her neck was bent. She noticed and slowly raised a hand to hold his cheek.

"Eren..." she slowly said. "I...don't...have...a lot...of...time..." she spoke slowly as to not injure herself any further. 

"Petra!" he yelled as she saw her close her eyes before opening them with tears running down.

"Please...Auruo..." she spoke her hand falling from his cheek. He grabbed her hand and held it against his cheek again.

"I'll find him! I promise! Just don't go!" he pleaded as she closed her eyes.

"Can't..." she quietly said. "You...were an...amaze...ing...bro...r...n't...et...I...ou..." her words died down as her breathing stopped. He cried and held her body against his.

"No, please! I can't lose you too! Petra! Stay! Petra!" he cried out. But they fell to deaf ears. "Please, I haven't told you what I really wanted to!" He yelled. He wanted to tell her, she had the most beautiful eyes. They made everyone smile when she was happy and have people comfort her when she was sad. They made everyone miss her when she wasn't there. He wanted to say her eyes were just like the sun; Just like his mother.

But it was too late.

* * *

 

He found Auruo a few streets down when he left Petra.

His eyes were still intact, just like the rest of his family, but he assumed because he was in the city where the men were killing everyone, he had to face the same fate. It was then he noticed the silver ring around Auruo's finger.

They were engaged. But because of him- he must've led those men here- they wouldn't be able to have a wedding. Nor kids. They couldn't have a family together with the five cats Petra said she wanted.

It was all because of him. It was his fault.

* * *

 

When he walked into the neighboring city, a few days away by foot, he ignored everyone. He went to the nearest motel and ignoring the looks everyone gave him he booked a room for a day. He grabbed the key and walked into the temporary room. He fell on the bed exhausted and fell asleep. He had a nightmare of the man who killed his mother.

When he woke, he only remembered the intense look of blue eyes.

He decided then, he hated blue eyes. As well as his eyes. Golden eyes that brought death around him.

* * *

 

He didn't do anything as the men taunted him and punched him in the alley, darkened from the view of the people passing by. The men didn't seem to like that.

"Acting all tough are you?" the one with a scar across his eye said. The other two laughed. He didn't.

"No." he said.

"Finally talking?" the man with blonde hair asked. He stared at him as a car's headlights managed to hit his eyes, illuminating the golden color they had. They all didn't seem like the type to kill for his eye color but the shortest one of them all seemed to know what they meant.

"Hey," he said catching the attention of the other two men. "He has that gold eye."

"What are you talking about, dumbass?" the one with a scar asked. He looked at their conversation as the shorter explained how gold eyes were worth a lot of money. He watched as they smiled and looked back at them.

"Guess this is our lucky day." the blonde said. They all walked to him and the one with a scar held him in a choking hold.

"We're going to get rich!" they said. Although his breath was cut off, he didn't panic. He welcomed death with an embrace believing he deserved this for the deaths he brought.

"I'm sorry..." he whispered out of breath. He wasn't sure if he was apologizing to his mother, to Petra, to Auruo. All he knew was he was sorry for having them killed. He was sorry for not crying for his father, his adoptive parents. He was sorry for being born. He almost blacked out and before he did he was let go. His body automatically forced him to breath in gulps of air and cough.

He heard the men grunt and looked up through blurry eyes. He managed to see a figure swiftly move and beat up the three men. They laid down on the floor, unconscious, then the figure turned to him. They bent down and his vision cleared up to see them with no problem.

It was a girl he noticed. She had black hair that framed her face, dark brown eyes, a sharp nose, and pink full lips. She stood up and held out her hand. He looked at it then at her. She sighed and grabbed his arm and held him up.

"Are you okay?" she asked. She let go of his arm and he continued to stare at her. Why? he thought.

"Why did you save me?" he weakly said. 

"It would have left me feeling guilty." she reasoned dusting off her clothes which consisted of a white t-shirt and black jeans and high-heeled boots.

"You don't know me..." he said. She looked at him before reaching for her phone.

"Don't need to. But if it helps, my name's Mikasa." she sent a text on her phone before stretching out her hand. "And yours?" He looked at her hand and stepped back.

"I don't need your help." he said coldly. He glared at her and another headlight hit his eyes. But she didn't react.

"You were going to be killed. Most likely because of your eyes."

"I know. And if you're after them too, go ahead! Kill me and take them! I don't need them!" he yelled. She stared at him with a neutral expression before walking up to him and grabbing his shirt.

"I don't what the hell happened to you and I don't need to know. But the fact that you are willing to die tells me you can't be on your own. Do you need to be somewhere?" she asked getting closer to his face with every sentence.

"No but I--"

"Good. Come with me." she moved her hand from his shirt to his wrist and pulled him out of the alley.

"Hey, wait! Let me go!" he said removing his hand. She turned around and looked at him.

"Do you want to live?" she asked him.

"What kind of que--"

"Do. You. Want to. Live?" she asked pausing on each word to intimidate him.

"Y-Yes?" He said before he thought. She was satisfied with that answer and grabbed his wrist once more.

"Where are we going?" he asked after a few moments.

"The store. We should get you some colored contacts to hide those gold eyes of yours. As long as they shine, there will be people after you." 

"Why?" he asked when they reached a red light. He looked at the ground, his free hand gripping the necklace he received from Petra a few years ago.

"Didn't I tell you? If I let you die by someone's hand, I would have guilt eating at me. I could've done something will run through my head." she said. They crossed the street and he looked at her back.

"Did something happen?" she looked back for a second before looking forward again.

"...A long time ago." she answered. They walked mostly in silence until they arrived at a store that sold contacts. She told him to keep his hood up and to not look up. He listened. If she was going to kill him, she would've done it already.

"Eren." he said when she led to an aisle. She looked up at him.

"What?"

"My name. It's Eren." he looked away once he said as a woman walked past them. When he looked at Mikasa she was hiding a small smile by pulling up her shirt to cover her mouth.

"Hi Eren. I'm Mikasa. Nice to meet you."

* * *

 


	2. The Man With Grey Eyes

Each friend represents a world in us, a world not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.

-Anais Nin 

 

The house was silent when he and Mikasa arrived. She told him everyone tended to sleep early even though it was only ten at night. He asked what she was still doing up and she shrugged. 'I run when I can't sleep. We aren't locked in here.' She turned on the light to illuminate the living room and led him into the kitchen. She sat him down as she left the room temporarily to get a first aid kit. When she returned, she noticed his head was down. Worried that he had hurt himself she quickly walked over. Mikasa sighed when she noticed he simply had his eyes closed.

 

"Eren, wake up," she whispered to him. She saw him open his eyes, an ocean green due to the contacts, and looked at her. "I need to check if there are any bruises as well as your neck. Also, you can't sleep with your contacts. They'll damage your eyes." she said softly when she looked at him. He managed to hide it, but she could see. She could see how broken he was and how alone he must have felt. When he called her name, she shushed him and sprayed disinfectant near his lip where it had been split open.

 

"It's not serious enough for stitches," she told him and she ripped open a band-aid,"but it'd be best if you don't touch it." She wiped at the dirt in his face with wet wipes and he let her. It reminded him of his mother, a distant memory at this point. He couldn't even remember her voice. Mikasa looked at his bruising neck and tenderly cleaned the area. She felt him flinch at every touch and wasn't sure if it was because of the pain or because of the wipe's coldness. Either way, she finished what she could and closed the kit.

 

"The bruises should go away in a few weeks." she told him. She noticed him nodding off and thought his energy must've been drained out. She offered him something to drink but he refused. She helped him stand up when she realized how weak he suddenly became. She worried; Just being tired did not cause this. She noticed how thin he was too.

 

"M'fine. . ." he whispered when he saw her look. He weakly pushed himself away and stumbled when walking forward.

 

"You're not," she said as she reached to grab him before he fell. "You're obviously starved. How long has it been since you last ate?" she asked. She looked at him mumble to himself and shake his head. "Don't tell me it was on purpose." He stopped mumbling. She frowned and wondered just what had happened to him. She wasn't one to pry into someone's life but when they were this depressed, she couldn't help but do so.

 

But her current task was to at least help him into her bed. The empty rooms only had mattresses since hardly anyone used them but seeing Eren in his current state, she couldn't send him off there. She'd just sleep on the couch, it was comfortable enough. She helped him over to her bed and was glad he at least had enough strength to sit and remove his contacts. She took out the case and made sure to leave it beside him for when he woke up. When she looked back at him, he was already asleep. She grabbed an extra blanket she kept in her closet and walked over to the living room's couch. She turned off everything and settled into the couch.

* * *

Eren stirred as he felt the sun hit his eyes. He turned around, wincing when he hit his neck with his arm. Opening his eyes, he scanned the room he was in before sitting straight. He was in a bed he realized as he looked down. The covers were a brown color with what looked like orange embroidery that formed flowers. He slowly raised his hand to his neck, feeling the bruises and remembering what had happened. He was attacked, then rescued by Mikasa. He held his necklace in his hand, it being his only source of comfort. He looked over at the dresser which had a case on top. He vaguely remembered them being his contacts. With a sigh, he put them in, only poking his eye once accidentally, before standing up.

 

He almost fell back down as dizziness rushed through him. He held his head in his hand until it passed and he walked out. All the doors were open and he questioned whether everyone was awake or if they were always open. He passed through the hall and into the living room where Mikasa was talking with a blond person. Mikasa noticed him first and waved him over. He slowly walked over to her and sat down where she had instructed him to. He looked at the person who waved at him cheerfully.

 

The blond had blue eyes, was his first thought. No matter how kind they looked, he couldn't trust them. He didn't think he would be able to trust any person with blue eyes. Mikasa called for his attention.

 

"Eren," she started. "This is Armin Arlert, a friend of mine. Armin, this is Eren, the one I was telling you about." 

 

"Hi Eren!" Armin said with a smile. "It's nice to meet you!" he stuck out his hand but Eren only looked at it. After a moment, Armin put his hand down but he kept a smile still. Mikasa looked at him and seemed to remember something by the way her face lit up.

 

"Eren, come with me. Armin, could you prepare a plate for him?" she asked. The blond nodded and they both stood up, one heading towards the kitchen the other looking at Eren. "Do you need getting up?"

 

"I managed to get here by myself didn't I?"

 

"You did, but. . .Here, let me help you up." she gave a hand to help him but he refused.

 

"No, I'm fine." he said as he pushed himself off the couch. He slowly followed her into the kitchen where there was only one person besides Armin. They were drinking a cup of tea but the way he held it made Eren confused. He hadn't used a proper cup in a while but he was sure they weren't supposed to be held that way. The person, a man, was also doing something with a book, he was just looking at. Mikasa sat him down two seats next to him and the man looked over at him. He looked over as well, out of curiosity, and didn't overlook the frown on his face.

 

"Ah, Eren this is Levi. He's the one who started this. . ." she waved a hand as she thought of a word and set a plate with food in front of him. "Guild, for simple words. Levi, this is Eren and as far as we all know, he's going to be staying with us." she said with a tone that left no room for argument. Levi 'tch'ed and went back to looking at the book. Mikasa turned her attention to Eren who was staring at the plate. He looked up at her.

 

"I'm not hungry." he stated.

 

"Yes, you are. And I expect you to finish the plate, or at least half of it." she gave him an option but he wasn't budging. "Don't make me feed it to you."

 

"I don't want it." he said pushing the plate a bit further from him. Of course he did but he didn't think he would be able to keep it in his stomach. He'll most likely vomit it back up without meaning to. 

 

"Just eat something off of it. She won't leave you alone." he looked beside as Levi spoke. He had set the book down and was leaning on his hand to look at him. "I'm talking from experience. It's better if you just eat it on your own instead of her shoving it down your throat." Eren noticed he had never seen grey eyes before until he met Levi. It was strange when all he saw were brown or blue eyes, sometimes hazel or green. Or gold. But never grey eyes.

 

He look back at his plate. He picked up one of the toast and he took a bite. He either didn't like the taste or just wasn't used to it. But he continued eating it and as he did, he never knew just how hungry he had left himself by avoiding food. Mikasa seemed satisfied with the way he was eating, because he finally was, and Levi thought it was the disgusting. He couldn't even wait to chew.

 

"I'm taking my leave now." Levi simply said. He had a busy day ahead of him and he wanted to get started right away.

 

"Alright then, make sure not to kill anyone." Mikasa said. He just waved her off as he left the kitchen. All that remained was her and Eren. She looked back to see him still eating and she couldn't help but smile. She sat down next to him and waited until he noticed her.

 

"What do you want for lunch?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy 2016 everyone! About time I updated too. . .It is shorter than the first but that's because I lost my work and had to start all over. Anyways I hope you enjoyed this chapter! The next update should be within a month but I'll try making it quicker!  
> Have an awesome day/night!~


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